melopene:wrenchboy: I am in the process of setting up for my first brew, is this what it finally gonna take to get me to join facebook?

Teehee. There are plenty of other homebrew forums out there, but I love my Fark people.

I love the folks from Fark, the perfect blendl of intelligence and snark, I find myself in the minority of computer literate people who are not on Facebook or any other of the social sites (Fark don't count right?)

Oddly, while I dislike the taste of beer rather intensely, my brothers (and of course a few of my friends) do enjoy it. So around the holidays, I brew up 5-10 gallons of actual medicinal root beer. Sassafras root, Sarsaparilla root, Marshmallow root, Yellowdock root, Burdock root, Star Anise, and if you're looking for a nice cream soda finish, a touch of vanilla.

Incidentally, if you don't like beer either, you can bag the mix up in teabags, and it makes a great wintertime tea. In either form though, I've found it to be a great way to avoid getting sick when drunk once or twice a week, and a great way to feel better when you are sick, because every root in it has medicinal properties. It gives you lots of energy, helps assuage the symptoms of cold or flu, and improves circulation, which helps you feel warmer on a cold winter day.

Consequently, it shouldn't generally be drunk in the evening or before bedtime. Otherwise, you will still be staring at the walls, waiting for sleep, come sunrise. However, if a bad flu is making me drag ass, drinking this will make me feel more 'normal' (as defined by normal energy levels and lack of nasty aches and pains) than any over-the-counter non-drowsy flu medication I've had.

Swiftstone2012: However, if a bad flu is making me drag ass, drinking this will make me feel more 'normal' (as defined by normal energy levels and lack of nasty aches and pains) than any over-the-counter non-drowsy flu medication I've had.

As someone fighting a really nasty cold right now, this is very relevant to my interests.

melopene:Swiftstone2012: However, if a bad flu is making me drag ass, drinking this will make me feel more 'normal' (as defined by normal energy levels and lack of nasty aches and pains) than any over-the-counter non-drowsy flu medication I've had.

As someone fighting a really nasty cold right now, this is very relevant to my interests.

Interestingly, a number of studies were commissioned before and/or during WWI to determine the possible benefits of Sassafras for fighting flu. Turns out people who drank it two or three times a week often didn't get the Spanish Flu that killed millions, and when they did, they had a higher survival rate, and lower recovery times. However, by the end of WWI, antibiotics had been developed, and the funding for other such pursuits quickly dried up.

You can look up the medicinal properties of the other roots rather easily as well. They're all good for one cold/flu symptom or another.